Horse Conformation

Horse Conformation

The term ‘horse conformation’ describes the lines, muscling and characteristics of a horses body. Whether your horse has ‘good’ or ‘bad’ horse
conformation depends really on what breed your horse is (since each breed is different their horse conformation is different and youll be looking for
different good or bad horse conformation points).

Example: If you were going to buy a Thoroughbred then youd be looking for a tall horse with
long, slender legs, a short back with a longish neck, a deep girth, strong chest and well-sloped withers. But if you wanted aAndalusian youd want to look for a horse with a intelligent head, a thick neck, sturdy
but slim legs, a shortish back and a wavy mane and tail.

However, there are a few things that apply to every breed of horse which will determine its horse conformation. Heres a list of things that come in bad horse
conformation, if your horse has none of these it has pretty good horse conformation:

Back at the Knee – When a horses knees, when seen from the side, seem to extend backwards.

Calf Knees – When a horses knees are shallow from back to front.

Cow Hocks – When a horses hocks, when seen from the rear, turn inwards like a cows.

Ewe Neck – When the top line of a horses neck is concave and the bottom one is convex.

Herring-Gutted – When there is an upward slope from the front to the back of a horses underbelly.

Swayed Back – When a horses back is hollowed out, sinking in instead of lying at its regular line. (NOTE: this often happens naturally in
horses as they get older.)

Tied in Below the Knees – When the measurement of the bone just below the knee is shorter then that farther down the cannon bone.

Roman Nosed – When a horse’s muzzle points straight downwards, sort of like a Greek’s nose. (NOTE: this charateristic is sort-after in some breeds
of horse, while in others, it can cause them to not be registered.)

Here are two pictures of horses with bad horse conformation:

This Nez Perce Horse has very thick legs, a thin neck, a slight Roman nose, a head that’s too small for its body,
almost no tail and oversized ears.

This Mangalarga horse has a thin neck, its back slopes upwards towards the hind quarters and thin, wispy tail.

Here are two pictures of horses with good horse conformation:

This Oldenburg horse has a beautiful head, a perfect neck, sloping withers, a deep barrel, a strong chest, sturdy, but slender legs, well-
muscled hind quarters and a thick tail.

This Dutch Warmblood has a noble head, a strong neck, a big chest,
a deep barrel, sturdy, but slim legs, muscular hind quarters and a thick tail.